INTERSPORT Announces Field for THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup

Today, Intersport announced the field for THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup to be held at Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton, N.J. Being played for the third year, THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup allows players to compete on the same course and enjoy the same experience as the participants in the LPGA Tour's Cognizant Founders Cup played later that week.

THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup is an 18-hole stroke play competition, which will be held on May 8, with the winner earning an exemption into the Cognizant Founders Cup, which will be contested May 11-14, marking a continuation of Cognizant's commitment to supporting equal opportunity and diversity in the game of golf and beyond. Past winners include Amari Avery (2021) and Lakareber Abe (2022).

"We at Intersport are thrilled that our friends at Cognizant, in this third year, have continued their commitment to sponsoring exemptions to their LPGA Tour's Cognizant Founders Cup through THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup," said Jason Langwell, Executive Vice President of Intersport and Executive Director of the Rocket Mortgage Classic. "This continued support furthers our efforts to bolster access and opportunities for talented Black golfers."

THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup (formerly THE JOHN SHIPPEN Shoot-Out Presented by Cognizant) began as a companion event of THE JOHN SHIPPEN National Invitational in Detroit. The event was renamed and moved to Mountain Ridge Country Club in West Caldwell, NJ, as a standalone competition in 2022.

"At Cognizant, our purpose is guided by creating equal opportunities in and outside the workplace," said Shameka Young, VP and Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Cognizant. "We are proud to sponsor THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup and the Cognizant Founders Cup on the LPGA Tour to create new opportunities for Black female athletes and help pave the way for broader inclusivity. We hope these events inspire other women in sports and beyond."

THE JOHN SHIPPEN COGNIZANT CUP PLAYER ANNOUNCEMENTS

(Players Listed in Alphabetical Order)

Name / Age / Status / College

LAKAREBER ABE (27) – Professional (University of Alabama)

• 2022 THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup champion
• 2022 LPGA Cognizant Founders Cup competitor
• 2023 Epson Tour member 

MADISON BARNETT (24) – Professional (University of North Carolina at Charlotte)

• Runner-up, 2021 Georgia State Golf Association Women's Match Play
• Top-10 finish, Georgia Women's Amateur

PAIGE CRAWFORD (31) – Amateur (Montana State)

• Four professional top-10s
• 2013 Big Sky individual champion

JANELLE JOHNSON (26) – Professional (Nova Southeastern University)

• 2023 Epson Tour member
• Turned professional in June 2018

BREANNE JONES (26) – Professional (UC Irvine)

• Runner-up, 2022 THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup
• 2023 Epson Tour member
• Three Top-20 finishes on Cactus Tour
• Two Top-5 finishes on WAPT

AMBER KUYKENDALL (26) – Professional (Texas Southern) – Houston, TX

• 2022 THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup participant
• Three Time First-Team All SWAC
• Five Top-25 finishes on WAPT

GEORGIA OBOH (22) – Professional

• 2022 THE JOHN SHIPPEN National Invitational participant
• First Nigerian to Monday qualify and compete in an LPGA Tour event (2022 ShopRite LPGA Classic)
• 2023 Ladies European Tour (LET) member
• 2023 Epson Tour member

MARIAH STACKHOUSE (29) – Professional (Stanford)

• 2022 THE JOHN SHIPPEN National Invitational participant
• Five LPGA Tour Top 10s
• 102 LPGA Tour starts
• Four-time collegiate All-American

ALLYN STEPHENS (18) – Amateur (Texas A&M)

• 2022 THE JOHN SHIPPEN COGNIZANT CUP participant
• 2022 Texas Women's Amateur quarterfinalist
• 2022 AJGA Shreveport Open Champion

Announced in March 2021, THE JOHN SHIPPEN Invitational was created to identify historical barriers, expand Black representation in golf, and address the lack of Black representation in business and leadership roles in golf and across professional sports.

Named after John Shippen, Jr., the first American-born golf professional and the country's first Black golf professional, THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup brings together top Black men and women collegiate and professional golfers in the US to compete.

"We're excited by the continued growth and expansion of THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup through this amazing relationship with our friends at Cognizant," said Sommer Woods, tournament lead for THE JOHN SHIPPEN. "We hope THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup continues to provide Black players with an opportunity to advance their golf careers in ways that previously haven't existed for them."

Upper Montclair Country Club is one of only a few country clubs worldwide known to have hosted tournaments for all three professional golf tours, including the LPGA in 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, and 2007-2009. Long considered one of New Jersey's premier golf clubs, this legendary A.W. Tillinghast golf course design underwent a significant renovation in the 1950s, directed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr., transforming Upper Montclair Country Club into its present 27-hole Championship layout.

For updated information on THE JOHN SHIPPEN, please visit www.TheJohnShippen.com and follow us on Facebook and Instagram (@TheJohnShippen) and Twitter (@TheJShippen).

For information about sponsorship opportunities or how to get involved, please email THEJOHNSHIPPEN@intersportnet.com.